Panama Compliance Report

Regulatory Overview

Regulatory Status

Regulators have not addressed crypto; legal status ambiguous

Key Regulator(s)

Ministry of Commerce and Industries, Superintendency of Banks of Panama

Primary Legislation

Be incorporated under Panamanian law (Public Registry)., URL for Law 23 of 2015 (Spanish): Link to Gaceta Oficial for Ley 23 de 2015 (Thi, URL for Law Decree 1 of 1999 (Spanish): Link to Gaceta Oficial for Decreto Ley 1, Decreto Ley No. 2 de 2008, que regula la actividad bancaria en Panamá, Entities likely fall under Law 23 of 2015., a Panamanian lawyer or law firm, Engage a Panamanian law firm to incorporate a company (e.g., a Sociedad Anónima, General Law of the Securities Market, Law No. 23 of April 27, 2015 (Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Financing of Ter, This law, and its subsequent amendments, govern AML/CFT for financial institutio

Travel Rule

Adopted — Threshold: Implemented

Tax Reporting

Foreign-Sourced Capital Gains: For individuals and businesses resident in Panama, capital gains derived from the trading or sale of cryptocurrencies on foreign exchanges or with non-Panamanian counterparties are generally considered foreign-sourced income. Under the territorial tax system, these gains are not subject to capital gains tax in Panama. This is the most common scenario for crypto investors in Panama.. Panamanian-Sourced Capital Gains: If, theoretically, a capital gain from cryptocurrency could be definitively proven to originate from a source within Panama (e.g., selling crypto through a Panamanian-regulated exchange to a Panamanian counterparty, if such infrastructure existed and was deemed Panamanian-sourced), then it could potentially be subject to general capital gains tax rules.. For the sale of real estate or certain securities within Panama, the capital gains tax rate is typically 10%. However, it is highly unlikely that cryptocurrencies would be uniformly classified as "securities" for this purpose without specific legislation.. General Business Income: If an entity's primary business activity is high-frequency crypto trading within Panama, any profits might be classified as regular business income rather than capital gains, and taxed under corporate income tax rules (see below).. Conclusion: In practice, most crypto capital gains for Panamanian residents are tax-exempt due to the territorial principle.

Key Facts

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